Favorite Dreamcast racing game?

[josekortez]

At this point, I can say the Dreamcast is a great system for racers. Daytona USA, Test Drive: LeMans, Test Drive: V-Rally, San Francisco Rush 2049, Sega Rally 2, Test Drive 6, and Demolition Racer: No Exit...I could continue with the U.S. releases, but it's probably best to stop with the ones I've played and enjoyed.

I just played the copy of Test Drive 6 that I bought this afternoon, and it's better than the online reviews would admit. Even though the graphics could use some polish, I like the betting system. I also think the Project Gotham Racing series could learn a lot from its braking system. However, I can tell immediately that Demolition Racer: No Exit is built from the same engine, and that it is a much better game than TD 6.

Although I will always have a soft spot in my heart for the first track in Daytona USA, but I have to say that my favorite DC racer is still Demolition Racer: No Exit. I love ramming other cars, finding shortcuts, and most of all, winning.

Notice that I didn't say "best Dreamcast racing game" in the header. I don't want anyone coming to blows in this thread! And I won't hold it against anyone if they mention Looney Tunes: Space Race... :)

[purenergy]

San Francisco Rush 2049!!!!!!!!!

Although the racing mode is fun, the battle mode is my favorite multi-player game, period!
Enjoy blowing up your friends with the bouncing green cannon balls, or sneak up behind them with the rocket launcher.
:D

Brad

still wishing for a Rush sequel......... :(

[Ze_ro]

I gotta vote for San Francisco Rush 2049 as well. I didn't like the whole "wings" thing, but at least it's not a big part of the game.

I also really liked Vanishing Point, and it would have definitely come out ahead of Rush 2049 if it wasn't for the ridiculous amount of unlocking in the game.

I've heard good things about Metropolis Street Racer and Test Drive: Le Mans, but I haven't tried either of them yet.

--Zero

[Perkar]

i'm gonna go with Speed Devils on this one... i played the piss out of that one. you've gotta gamble to make your way to the top of rankings, and it feels so *good* when you make good on your gamblings.

<feels all warm and fuzzy>

[dreamcaster]

Here's the DC racers I own:

Sega Rally 2 - Probably my favourite racer on the system. Pure rally goodness. :-P

Sega GT - Whilst it's no Gran Turismo killer, it does improve in some areas that GT is lacking in. Creating your own cars was heaps of fun.

San Francisco Rush 2049 - Best Rush game ever, and the DC version is the best iteration of this fantastic racer. Offers everything you'd expect and more.

V-Rally: Expert Edition - Whilst previous V-Rally games have unimpressed me, I took a gamble on this version and found myself pleasantly surprised! Great control, excellent gameplay and heaps of cars and features (such as the track editor mode).

Tokyo Highway Challenge - Oh yeah! Great music and an excellent premise make this a fantastic game for one of the first time efforts in the "illegal street racing" genre.

Metropolis Street Racer - The precursor to Project Gotham Racing. Really showed what the DC was capable of and MSR still feels like a current generation title.

Daytona USA 2001 - Being a huge Daytona fan, loading this up for the first time was a dream come true. Finally! A home version of Daytona that improved on the arcade version. It was a nice ending to the series that Sega often neglected in the home.

Tokyo Highway Challenge 2 - Improves and builds upon the original game in every aspect. Although, the lack of a two-player mode is disturbing. :o

F355 Challenge: Passione Rossa - A true driving simulator. When I feel like some serious racing, F355 satisfies me well.

When it comes to racing games, I'd have to say that the Dreamcast is probably the best equipped console - even better than the PlayStation (despite the fact it has the GT series).

[Keir]

Re-Volt!

[Sniderman]

I'm a Hanna Barbera cartoon buff and I gotta say, Wacky Races tickled the hell out of me. Sgt. Blast and Pvt. Meekly in the Army Surplus Special for me!

"And here comes car double-zero - Dick Dasterdly and Muttley in the Mean Machine!"

[metal_head]

I am a massive driving game nut, and my absolute no 1 fave on DC is Daytona, but others I have enjoyed include MSR, the prequel to the Project Gotham games and it's good, Le Mans is good, "Super Runabout" is fun, I really enjoyed the Tokyo Highway games, and 4 wheel Thunder had its moments too.

If we're not just talking car games, Hydro thunder is a blast too.

I also got some mileage out of Vanishing point, V Rally, Re-volt, Crazy Taxi (:-)) and even thought that the derided "Buggy heat" was worth playing.

[jgenotte]

I am confused...perhaps someone can help. I just recently got a dreamcast and am having lots of fun with it, but there is something that I have noticed and do not like about the 2 racing games that I own. The games that I have are Daytona USA and Vanishing Point. I like everything about these two games except for one MAJOR thing. The controls SUCK. Any time I turn, the car goes into some kind of rediculous slide. This is the most un-realistic thing that I think I have ever seen on reality-based racing games. The car can not just pivot around the vertical axis when the front tires are turned. I find this un-realistic and very diffucult to get used to.

Has anyone else noticed this? Does this REALLY bother anyone else?

It is strange though to hear others compare these two games to great racing games like Project Gotham Racing and Gran Turismo. Perhaps there is something wrong with my dreamcast or controlers. Anybody have any input?

[metal_head]

I am confused...perhaps someone can help. I just recently got a dreamcast and am having lots of fun with it, but there is something that I have noticed and do not like about the 2 racing games that I own. The games that I have are Daytona USA and Vanishing Point. I like everything about these two games except for one MAJOR thing. The controls SUCK. Any time I turn, the car goes into some kind of rediculous slide. This is the most un-realistic thing that I think I have ever seen on reality-based racing games. The car can not just pivot around the vertical axis when the front tires are turned. I find this un-realistic and very diffucult to get used to.

Has anyone else noticed this? Does this REALLY bother anyone else?

It is strange though to hear others compare these two games to great racing games like Project Gotham Racing and Gran Turismo. Perhaps there is something wrong with my dreamcast or controlers. Anybody have any input?



No, I think its par for the course. A lot of driving games have ridiculously overstated sliding....some times I can get on with it, with others it puts me right off.

The controls in Daytona can take some getting used to, otherwise try the grippiest car and set the tires to maximum sioftness.

As I said previosly, I love driving games but I find it hard to judge any as realistic....I tend to like the Arcadey type drivers best anyway....give me Ridge Racer over Gran Turismo any day of the week.

[josekortez]

It's called powersliding, where you shift the weight of the car. In Daytona USA, it can be kind of fun if you ram into another car and flip it over. Only arcade racers use this technique, though...

However, I say the same thing about how much I can't stand rally-style games. I hate not keeping my car on a muddy track. Also, Gotham is overrated. The sequel controls worse than the original IMO.

[jgenotte]

So, are there non-arcade style racing games on the dreamcast. If so, what are the best ones?

[crazyjackcsa]

If you're looking for something a little more realistic, check out
Test Drive Lemans, It's my favorite racer, the graphics are some of the best on the DC and it has what I think is a perfect mix of arcade/simulation feel.

[Ze_ro]

Keep in mind that with a lot of racing games (especially Daytona USA and Vanishing Point, and the more powerful cars in Sega GT) the controls are EXTREMELY sensitive. When you're taking corners, all you have to do is nudge the stick... pushing it all the way will completely spin you out.

As for Wacky Races, I always preferred Looney Tunes Space Race. The only problem with Space Race was that the computer assistance was brutal... it basically forced the whole race to be close right up until the end, regardless of how good you were (of course, if you sucked, you'd be way behind). You could exploit this by not worrying about first place until the last quarter of the third lap, and then using a turbo boost to stay ahead just long enough to win. It works every time. Kind of ruins the game.

Anyone ever noticed in Daytona, if you pin a car against the side rail and pound him even slightly, their car will flip into the air? I exploited that one quite a few times too.

--Zero

[Daniel Thomas]

First off, I have to agree with the steering problems. The reason, I think, is simple: racing games were designed with steering wheels in mind, not analog thumb-pads. The difference is noticable. Designers are handling the joypads all wrong, making you move the controller left-to-right. You don't steer a car like that, and that's where a lot of the control issues come from.

Here's what developers should do: rotate the thumb-pad along the circumference. Simulate the actual steering motion. This way, you can allow for a greater range of motion that is much more intuiitive.

I've noticed that too many DC racers were plagued with bad steering. Cars would either over- or understeer. That was one of the things that turned me off to Daytona USA and MSR.

Thank goodness for the supply of great racing games. I'll just cut everything short (I really have to get back to writing my Nausicaa review for the website), and say my favorite DC racers are the following: Ferrari 355, Test Drive Le Mans, and the SF Rush 2049 Battle Mode. SF Rush is easily my favorite deathmatch game to hit the consoles since Goldeneye -- a wonderful tribute to Roadblasters.